ABOUT THIS ALBUM

Album Notes

"Bellydance revolutions" is dedicated to oriental dancers that changed the style of belly dancing in many aspects.

Pioneers Badia Masabni, Shafiqa Al-Qibtiyya and Samia Gamal of Egypt, added drama and changed the costume style of Middle Eastern dance, now known as cabaret style. Badia Masabni, born in Syria-Lebanon, moved to egypt begin 20 th century to open the first Egyptian music hall. She later sold her "Opera Casino" to the beautiful oriental dancer Beba Ezzedine (picture right).Taheya Carioca was the first to adapt non-Middle Eastern rhythms in her show. She asked her percussionists to incorporate Latin beats in their playing. An arab version of the rumba was used in many classical compositions, on this album on “Zarmina", blended with an Iraqi lively festive rhythm.

Beginning 21 st century, new styles arose, but on another continent. Belly dance was always an interaction of different cultures, American Tribal Style (ATS) and Fusion belly dance emerged as a logical development.

It would be inappropriate to mention here the names that changed oriental dance - in it's cabaret form - to the styles now generally called Tribal fusion. Simply because there has - and still is - an enormous burst of creativity sweeping through the belly dance community in a larger sense. So the list would be too long and still missing names of individuals and troupes.

"Funkabelly" can be defined as bellydance funk followed by "Al Marah", pure tribal style bellydance.

Arabic musicians have been fusing melodies and rhythms, East and West already in the 40's, 50's and the 60's.It's to honor these great masters that Abdel Hazim wrote "Zarmina".Zarmina features an arabic rumba beat transposing to bellywood track "Bellydance revolutions" as part 2 of the song.

The fabulous qanoun playing of Abdulrasol (Iraq) on "Zarmina" brings you back to Bagdad in the days of Caliph Haroun Al-Rashid and "Arabian nights".

"Tribalistic" blends of a intriguing 14/8 beat with a soulful kaval.The feeling of caught in a sandstorm on your way back home inspired to the writing of Harmattan. It develops from a slow katakufti beat to end in a blizzard of qanun on a malfuf rhythm.

East meets West is present in "Intergalactic guembri". The West here being the Magreb, where the guembri (a primitive string instrument) is native and the east by the tabla beats. An Egyptian kavala - sounding like human voices together with Turkish mizmar makes the blend complete.

The slow 9/8 beat of "Enneagram" is inspired by the tanura dance, the spinning cosmic dance of the dervishes.